Opinion

Editorial: Investments the state Chamber needs to push now to relaunch N.C.

Thursday, May 7, 2020 -- A news release from the N.C. Chamber of Commerce focused on getting the governor and legislature to join with the it to expand Medicaid and make major investments in our public schools and other state facilities would surely grab more attention than one that stresses differences. North Carolinians would be better off for it, too.

Posted 2020-05-07T03:21:58+00:00 - Updated 2020-05-07T09:00:00+00:00

CBC Editorial: Thursday, May 7, 2020; Editorial #8538
The following is the opinion of Capitol Broadcasting Company.

Gov. Roy Cooper’s announcement Tuesday to allow many businesses in North Carolina to reopen, while not going as far as the North Carolina Chamber of Commerce advocated earlier that day, should be one that the Chamber welcomes nonetheless.

The Chamber should say so and acknowledge the differences are nuanced. The Chamber should make clear that the businesses it represents look forward to continuing to work with the governor to keep our state on track and back to normal as fast as possible while also assuring the spread of the COVID-19 virus is under control and public health is protected.

The state Chamber needs to adopt a long-range view and look beyond immediate needs and quick fixes.

There are other important steps that the General Assembly and the governor can take now to move the state’s economy ahead as well as protect citizens and create jobs. It is time for the state Chamber to take the lead to get down to business and make critical investments to relaunch the state’s economy.

The Chamber should let our state leaders know this is the perfect time to expand Medicaid to the more than 500,000 citizens who now lack Health Insurance. It is a cost-effective step that will be paid almost entirely by the federal government. In addition to providing health coverage for a half-million people at this time of great need – it is also critical to financially fragile rural health centers. Additionally, expanding Medicaid now will, over the next three years, create 37,000 new jobs and inject $11.7 billion into the state’s economy.

Additionally, North Carolina needs to make critical investments by approving two major bond issues. It is time for major investments for:

Local school facility construction, repair and renovation.
State and local infrastructure needs – including local water and sewer facilities, university and community colleges needs as well as improvements to museums, parks and administrative facilities.

There is no better time. Investing now will pump critical dollars into the state’s economy and payoff with much needed facilities for years to come. The needs are well documented.

These projects will provide thousands of jobs in every county and corner of the state. The state’s credit rating is in the most-favored range – meaning projects will attract the cheapest borrowing rates. An official study that looks at what the state can safely afford says it can borrow up to $11 billion over the next 10 years.

These are two important initiatives that are right in the state Chamber’s wheelhouse. They will take care of North Carolina, get our state back to work and get money flowing in our economy.

A news release from the Chamber focused on getting the governor and legislature to join with the state Chamber to expand Medicaid and make major investments in our public schools and other state facilities would surely grab more attention than one that stresses differences. North Carolinians would be better off for it, too.